Chapter 8: Enter the Swamp
A few hours had passed since Link and Tatl had left Clock Town as the edge of a forest came into view. According to Dreek's directions, there was a gap in the forest that would lead them deeper inside and eventually to Woodfall, home of the dekus. He also couldn't help but notice a very large, hollowed log lying on the ground acting like a tunnel. It would make anyone wonder what kind of a tree could have a trunk that big.
As they all drew closer to the opening, Tatl seemed to slow down as she looked around at the scenery. Link didn't even notice until she quickly flew past him and up to a large tree next to the path they needed to head down.
"Oh. I remember this."
Link caught up with the fairy and looked at the tree with her to see a crude drawing of the skull kid and both of the fairies carved onto the tree.
"Tael and I drew this with the skull kid the first time we met him. He told us he had been fighting with his friends and that they had left him all alone."
Something that seemed to make sense to Link. A person who had his fun by hiding and jumping out on people can't have had many friends if they didn't agree with what he was doing. But still, to just leave him alone? That was harsh.
"It was pouring with rain and we were roaming the land, as we did, and looking for shelter to stay dry. We found that log just behind us now and took shelter there. That's where we found him, shivering all by himself with no-one to keep him comfort."
To Link, this sounded almost exactly like his first meeting with Saria, the Kokiri girl from the forest. Mido had a few of his friends with him and took Link to a part of the woods where nobody would see what they did. Together they all beat and kicked Link around in the mud, laughing the entire time and calling him names just because he didn't have a fairy yet. Link tried to fight back, but being outnumbered 5 to 1 meant he was suppressed easily and made his efforts futile.
They soon left him alone, in the rain, covered in mud and crying. He was different and somehow that warranted them to beat him and laugh at their pleasure, not caring at all for the feelings of this freak-child. He stayed there for hours, fearing that if he returned he would be bullied again, but it was then that he was found by Saria, running back to her home from her spot in the sacred meadow. That was the first time they met each other and it was thanks to her that Link found the courage to return home and not care what Mido said from then on.
"We spent the next day playing together and became good friends, all three of us. We carved this here in honour of that day and as proof of our friendship. Of course, it wasn't long before he got that mask and then…well, you know."
Of course he knew! It was because of him that he was on this insane quest in the first place!
Let me speak to her. I wish to comfort her.
"You will do no such thing. The strong are able to get over problems by themselves. Only the weak rely on others to give them strength."
This coming from the one who only ran from his problems because it was easier than over-coming them.
Link didn't reply to this as any response wouldn't help him. He just remained silent and walked on ahead allowing Tatl to catch up. She kept on staring at the drawing on the tree for another moment or two then snapped herself out of the gaze and flew after Link having now entered the border of Woodfall territory.
As he continued, the forest began to grow more dense and a feel of the Kokiri forest seemed to return to him, as if he were walking home. Sadly, the feel of the forest was similar to the time Ganondorf had coveted it with his darkness causing the soil to darken and the grass to become dull and useless. In this forest there was a strange gas of some kind covering the earth in a small layer, dissipating into the air when Link walked through and kicked it aside as if it had done something to offend him.
Tatl was fine as she flew above it and seemed immune to the effects it brought, but as they moved further into the forest the concentration of the gas grew and Link began to feel it for himself. His vision was becoming more and more blurred and his footing was weakening as well making a straight line difficult to walk.
Link had never been to a swamp before so he didn't know that some swamps emitted gasses toxic to humans, but more importantly he had never been to Termina before where there were some elements unfamiliar to the world of Hyrule and Link was about to discover the near extent of what these new elements could do to the body.
The boy, the fairy and the mask all came out into a clearing from the trees to find a large river of some kind winding through a gap in the woods. This river, however, was where the gas was coming from and it was evident by the sickly colour of the water. Tatl flew on ahead a little to see if there was any way around it so Link followed in order to hear her. He didn't even make it to the bank of the river before his vision became so blurred that he couldn't see anything clearly anymore and collapsed to the floor with his incredibly poor movement. The visible gas, now rising over his fallen head, wasted no time in being inhaled through Link's shallow breathing and a moment later he was out.
---
Link could hear voices. At first he couldn't recognise them, but he soon realised that one of them was Tatl. The other he couldn't guess. He tried to open his eyes to see who it was but this proved a difficult task as the strain upon them was great. The attempt of sight seemed to be noticed as the unknown voice spoke again but closer to him this time.
"No, no. Don't move. Not just yet. Just lie there for now."
Link did as the voice told him to do somehow knowing that this person knew what he was doing in order to help him. Suddenly a palm was placed upon his chest where his lungs would be and gave an unexpected push, winding him slightly. Were he able to move he would have instantly put his sword to their throat for attempting such an action, but his temper cooled when he noticed his breathing was more as it should be and strength seemed to return to him.
"You should be able to move a little now. Here, drink this."
Experimenting his new movement abilities, Link opened his eyes to be met with a slight blur still, but enough to see basic shapes including the glass being offered to him. Link slowly drank the red liquid down feeling a bitter taste and his strength returning to him, as did his sight.
Taking the opportunity he looked around his surroundings to see just what kind of place he was in. There were various coloured symbols across the walls and a large amount of bottles with strange liquids and items in them. Then he saw the person who had helped him.
"Gah! You…what…how?" Link blurted out.
"Rest easy boy. I have no intention of fighting you again."
Standing in front of Link was one of the two Gerudo witches who had kidnapped one of the Sages of Hyrule and raised Ganondorf to be the evil tyrant he was destined to become. Link had defeated them both and their combined form of Twinrova once in the heart of the Spirit Temple and assumed them dead, not to be alive and in a completely different world!
"How can I be sure?" Link asked cautiously.
"Because I could have easily let the swamp gas take your life. Instead I brought you back to my hut and saved you from almost certain death. You owe me your life, boy, not that I would call upon that."
"Yeah, Link. You should be more grateful to her." Tatl added.
Easy for her to say. Link hadn't got to the Spirit Temple in his re-telling of his first quest so she didn't know what these two witches were capable of. Hang on…two witches.
"Where is Koume?" Link asked directly.
The icy-blue haired witch turned away as if she hadn't heard the question, so he asked her again to get a response.
"I don't know." She replied.
"You lost her?" Link asked blandly.
"She went out to gather ingredients for potions a couple of days ago and hasn't returned since. I fear she may have lost me, which is why I went out to find her. As a result, I found you and here we are. Fate is a funny thing, isn't it."
Link ignored the last comment remembering all too well hearing the exact same words come from her before their last battle. He had never liked them then and he still didn't like either one of them now. He had no reason to trust them, believe them or help them so all he wanted to do now was hurry and leave to find this giant in order to go home. He tried to push himself off the bed and leave but was again stopped by the hand of the witch.
"Whoa now. I may have given you some of my healing potion but you still need to wait a little while before your body is better again. That was no normal gas you know." Kotake said.
"I don't care. If it's just a little while, I'll heal as I move." Link said while pushing himself back up again. He walked to the door of the hut they were in when it suddenly developed a sheet of ice over it. Link stood still awaiting an explanation which soon came.
"Even cured against the swamp gas, you won't find your way to the Woodfall temple that easily, boy." Kotake calmly said.
"How..." Link asked, then turned to see the fairy sitting on one of the tables. How much did you tell her? He thought. "So how do I get there?" Link bitterly asked.
"Help me find my sister and I'll escort you to the deku palace. They will lead you the rest of the way."
Link had to think about this for a moment. He despised these witches as the worst beings next to Ganondorf so helping them would be disgusting to even think about. However, it was most likely that he could not get to the deku palace by himself. He had Dreek, but there was something about this new person that made talking to him not a welcome thing. There was also the factor of keeping your enemies closest, so travelling with this fiend for a short while would make him feel safer than the possibility of them both following him for a surprise attack.
"Fine." Link finally said.
The ice covering the door dissipated into the air as a broom magically appeared beneath Kotake's feet. Flying over, she opened the door herself, as Link was unwilling to do so, followed by Tatl and finally Link. With a slight blur still in his vision Link nearly missed the ladder at the edge of the platform and almost walked right off if it weren't for Tatl quickly warning him and pointing him in the right direction.
Once he was on the ground again Link was able to look at his new surroundings which were much different than the ones before. They were back in the swamp again with a pool of water around the tree-hut from which they came, except this water was clean and not full of the same swampy textures that threatened to kill Link. The trees were denser around this place as well, apart from two areas which had pathways leading further into the woods. Kotake lead them down the pathway that looked darker than the other one. Link had suspicions, but chose not to voice them as he obediently followed.
---
Tael continued to ram into the magic walls set in place by Majora. No matter what he would continue until he was free and able to find his sister once again. It was approaching the evening and the two had never spent that much time apart from each other. He just had to break free.
Watching the city below him, Majora turned to see one last attempt from the blackened fairy.
"How many futile attempts do you require before you realise you have no hope?" Majora asked.
Tael kept on pushing until he felt drained of his energy, causing him to collapse to the floor. He couldn't even fly right now.
"How many legends does it take to show that evil never wins?" Tael asked in response.
"Why you little pest!" Majora said through clenched teeth.
He curled his hand as if holding something then threw it up, throwing Tael up as a consequence to the magic Majora was conjuring. A swift motion of the hand and Tael was back on the ground again, panting to get his breath back.
"Don't you ever talk that way to me again! I will not tolerate it!" Majora shouted.
"What will you do?" Tael asked curiously.
"What will I do?" Majora repeated.
Actually, what would he do? He could keep throwing him about but for some reason he doubted that it would silence the fairy. He was becoming stronger, more like his sister. He could kill him. Yes, that was a possibility. It seemed like he had no use anymore anyway. Looking down upon the city had shown him that the boy had left quite some time ago. He even managed to break the curse set upon him but this had been dismissed due to the temporary lapse in power and deemed the curse weak. There was no sign that they were coming back so there was no need to keep this fairy alive. Before doing so, he decided to toy with his prisoner.
"If I told you that I would kill you, what would you do?" Majora asked.
"I would remind you again that evil never wins and accept my fate." Tael replied without a seconds thought.
"So be it."
Majora floated back down to the Clock Tower roof and held Tael in his hand, staring at him with glowing eyes.
"Tell those you meet that their time is almost up." Majora calmly requested.
"I shall."
The shadow that lingered over his body turned an even darker shade than it already was and consumed the wings along with the body. Majora closed his hand over the dying fairy and allowed the separated particles of energy to flow through his puppet's arm and into his mask. The mind, body and soul of Tael the fairy no longer existed in this world as the strength of Majora increased with another soul added to his collection.
Something about the fairy had changed significantly but it was something that was of no more concern as the problem no longer existed. He had to admit, though, the noble side of him that challenged him and accepted the punishment was something to admire. Very few of his victims had that quality but those that did he enjoyed the most. They had the stronger souls, and provided more of a challenge in a fight. One of his first souls had shown him that.
Cutting himself short of old memories, Majora looked calmly to the south and to the swamp where that boy had gone. He did not possess the same nobleness as his greater souls, but nonetheless he had a powerful essence that would make his conquest all the easier. He wanted this boy and now he felt like going to see him.
"Time for some fun." Majora said to himself before floating towards the swamp.
---
With the time spent getting to the swamp, being unconscious and searching for the lost witch, sundown was approaching and what little light could get through the clump of tree was slowly diminishing. Link knew they only had a three day time limit until the moon crashed into the earth and already it was obvious that releasing all four giants in that time would be impossible, let alone two!
The three had searched a large portion of the forest already in hopes of finding the fire witch and no sign had been found. Link had remained silent throughout the search not wishing to talk to either the witch or the fairy as he just felt in a bad mood for wasting so much time.
"Ohhh, where could she be?" Kotake asked worriedly.
Her question was answered by a sudden, loud scream and a blast of fire flying up high into the air. Recognising it as her sister's magic Kotake added to the current speed of her broom and darted between the trees to the source of the scream. Reluctantly, Link ran after her with Tatl staying close to Link in case she needed to warn him of anything. In less than a minute, Kotake had found her fiery sister lying on the ground in a weakened slump.
"Koume! Here, drink this quickly" Kotake ordered, handing her a similar red potion she had given to Link.
Her shallow breathing became deeper and more frequent as the potion began to have an affect allowing her to whisper her thanks to her sister. A moment later and she would have used her growing strength to explain what had happened, but only if she hadn't seen the boy who slayed her run in soon after.
"Ahh! What's he doing here!?" Koume yelled.
"Koume, sister, calm yourself. I found him in the swamp dying from the gas. I saved him so he won't try to kill us, will you boy?" Kotake rhetorically asked. Link made no motion.
"He's still a little sour from what our dark lord did to him." Kotake added jokingly.
"That still doesn't explain what he's doing here." Koume stated.
"Nor does it for the two of you. I thought I killed you." Link said, speaking for the first time in hours.
"You'd be amazed what kinds of things your son can do when he has the Triforce of Power. Revival is not beyond his power, as you saw from Volvagia, and we are his parents after all." Kotake slyly replied.
Link had heard that much from some of the Gerudo warriors in passing, as well as from Nabooru the Spirit Sage, however even if Ganondorf did revive the two witches it did not explain them being in Termina or their sudden personality change to niceness.
"I'm sure you wish to interrogate us more," Koume said, breaking the short silence, "but I would like to return to our hut so you can question us on the way back. Any favour my sister may have promised can be paid once we are done."
Still agitated by the complete waste of time, Link felt he had no choice but to comply and walked behind the two sister witches as they floated back on their flying brooms. Leaving the small clearing together, nobody noticed the malevolent mask floating above what could have been a new soul for his ever-expanding collection.
"So you say Link killed you and that your son revived you. Who are you two exactly?" Tatl inquisitively asked.
"This fairy is not your old companion?"
"Navi ran away." Kotake whispered to her sister. Link chose to ignore it. "In any case, we are the two Gerudo witches, Koume and Kotake, mother to the infamous Ganondorf King of Evil and rulers of the harsh Gerudo desert. At least, that's who we used to be. Then your little friend showed up and killed us in order to awaken the last Sage of Hyrule. That should have been it for us, but with 300 or so years behind us we had a couple of favours we could call in and we were revived by a would-be dark lord in a far away land. One merciless kill later and we were free to do what we wanted!"
"And that lead to the fresh start?" Tatl asked.
"Not at first, no." Koume explained. "We were struck down by that accursed Master sword and with the intricate complications of time travel, we were revived in the time when you were still a child. We wasted no time in picking up old hobbies of pillaging villages and destroying castles, but we grew bored after a while and decided to try new hobbies. Sadly we still had a bad reputation in many lands despite them having not seen Ganondorf come to power so we decided to find some place new and start fresh. Soon enough we find our way to this place and open a potions shop with all kinds of ingredients. No more than a week later and we find you."
"It's not exactly a good enough reason for me to believe it or trust it." Link said coldly, stepping on a fallen twig as he walked behind the witches.
"True, it's not, but that's the story we have to tell and whether you believe it or not, it's the only story we shall tell." Koume replied equally as cold.
"Now we've explained why we are here, you tell us what you are doing here." Kotake demanded.
"She didn't tell you?" Link asked, looking at Tatl.
"Only that you two were looking for some giants. No major details."
Link had to think for a moment. He could lie and come up with some phoney story for finding the giants, or some different story completely but what exactly would that accomplish? Sure, a cover for the real story but did he have a reason – besides not trusting them – to hide his current aim? There was also the matter if Tatl would catch on and if she did, would she play along. In the end, he took a chance and told the truth.
"I need to find these giants so I can settle a deal." Link summarised.
"What kind of a deal?" Kotake asked, Koume deciding to let her sister do the talking.
"I get some mask that he wants, I get my freedom."
"Freedom?" Kotake asked in surprise. "You said so yourself that defeating Ganondorf and completing your destiny would ensure your eternal freedom. Why would you need to make a deal to get what you say you already have?"
"He has the power to deny me the right to return to the world I was born in. I'm stuck in this world until I fulfil our deal." Link explained.
"So why not ignore the deal and make a new life here?"
"On a doomed planet?" Link asked, looking up at the plummeting moon.
"Ah. So it really is threatening our new way of life." Kotake replied. "And what do you intend to do to stop it?"
"Suddenly I don't feel in the mood for talking anymore. Tatl, you seem good with people. You translate." Link ordered.
"Uh, ok." Tatl said, surprised by the sudden push of attention to her.
It unnerved her. Link was rude in the way that he simply brushed off the witches, but he was oddly polite in the way he was rude by giving a compliment to her. This boy was like no other and very hard to predict at times which, again, made her wonder if travelling with him was really worth all the hassle it was causing. The last trail of thought was still remembered from the last time she nearly lost herself so she knew it was best in the long run. All she had to do now was make it by in the short run.
"The mask man told us about these giants that lived in the four corners of the land. Apparently they have the power to stop Majora, the one responsible for this, and save the land from his wrath." Tatl began.
"Majora? I've read ancient scriptures about that. They said something about a soul-stealer." Koume spoke up.
"I don't know about that, but I can tell you that it's some kind of evil mask that has taken control of my friend, a skull kid, and is now aiming to destroy the world. Only these four giants can stop it from colliding and one of them is said to be here in Woodfall Temple, hence why we are here searching for it." Tatl continued.
"It doesn't look like you have much time to find these giants before the world is destroyed." Koume replied, taking another look up at the moon. Link seemed to make a noise in agreement, but nobody added anything to it. "How do you expect to do it?"
"Well, to be perfectly honest, we don't. Link has this instrument that took us back in time so we should be able to keep doing it until we've saved them all." Tatl explained.
"Ah, the Ocarina of Time. I see Zelda trusted you enough to give you the sacred item." Koume correctly stated
The group of four kept walking back to the treetop potion shop while the group of three kept talking, Link standing by his claim of not feeling up to talking much. Upon returning both sisters flew up and inside without Link who was restrained by Tatl, saying they deserve a moment alone after being lost from each other for a while. Koume was getting adjusted and ready to sit back behind the counter to cover for her sister while she prepared to leave again and direct Link to the Deku Palace.
"I wonder." Koume mused.
"Hmm?" Kotake replied, grabbing a map from a box.
"I wonder if we should have told the boy that it was really that mask man the fairy spoke of who revived us, not some far away dark lord." Koume finished, now leaning on the counter.
"I think not. That boy is awfully sceptical and if he knew we had a deal with him as well, he might go back and challenge him to a fight, which he may win." Kotake voiced.
"Remind me again why that is a bad thing."
"Because if he is destroyed then his power will have nowhere to go, allowing Majora to absorb it and become invincible! As much as I love the concept of an invincible being, we wouldn't be needed and we would die along with the rest of the world. Do you want to die…again?" Kotake asked.
"Well, considering how much torture it was the last time, I think I do want to put it off for as long as possible." Koume realised.
"Exactly. Now I have to go before that boy gets suspicious and thinks we're plotting against him."
"He already does." Koume pointed out.
"I know, but I mean making actual plans to stab him in the back. You'd think the same thing if the roles were reversed."
"True. Alright, go. I'll see you later."
With that Kotake did open the door and glide down to the boy in green and his new fairy on the back of her broomstick, map in hand.
"Alright, follow me."
Kotake flew towards the opposite way she did when looking for Koume at a speed which both Link and Tatl could follow comfortably. With everyone up to speed, there was no real reason for any of them to talk, and so nobody even uttered a word as they passed around and away from the harmful swamp gasses.
Why exactly the mask man wanted the two of them was something both sisters constantly thought about ever since their revival. For all he knew they could have still been evil, which they were. It's just a shame for them that the mask man is so good at making a deal. The deal of which they made is that he had revived them, even left all of their powers intact, but were magically sworn to never use their powers to harm innocents and to help Link when he came looking for a giant.
Well, so far they had yet to harm any innocents, but mainly because the magical deal prevented them from doing so yet now was the part of the deal that was totally voluntary yet also had to be done in order to sustain their lives. If the mask man died, then their deal would be broken and they could revert to their old ways instantly, if it weren't for the fact that they would die to Majora's power no matter where they went.
It was one of those screwed-by-the-contract moments that kept those in power with power and those without under that power. Not something they minded when working for Ganondorf, but he aimed for destruction, not welfare for others.
And now she was helping Link to find the giant. Just because they couldn't harm innocents it didn't erase any hard feelings they still harboured from being killed by him in the first place. Hell was hell! And it was him who sent them there, but a deal is a deal and currently the deal was to take him to the Woodfall Temple.
A half hour or so later, the trio came to a clearing amongst the trees that was hard to see with the human eye to reveal the most wonderous structure that could ever exist in any forest. Standing at around 50ft high and who knows how long was the giant wooden Palace of the Dekus with a look similar to a human palace. Having done her job, Kotake turned around to leave.
"Well, there you go. The Deku Palace. That's our deal done, now I'm going home. Any objections?" Kotake asked before waiting a second then really leaving.
Slowly walking up to the Palace, Tatl was still in slight awe of how such a building could exist in a swamp and at just how amazing it looked. Link was impressed, but not as much as Tatl.
Now you need me. Dreek spoke to Link.
"Now?"
I may not be able to read your mind when in this pack of yours but I can still hear things and you could have easily used me to get to the Palace. You didn't, so I accepted it and said nothing what with you being so stubborn. Dreek replied.
"So why do I need you now? Hylians aren't allowed in?"
No human has entered in a few hundred years. You can try if you want, but odds are they won't chance it. Just let me in.
Deciding against speaking further Link reached back into the invisible pack and picked Dreek out of it before placing it on his face. This was the first time he had even attempted it so he wasn't sure what to expect. A sudden jab of pain was something he did not expect. He cried out for a moment then stopped suddenly as the pain vanished, along with his human form. Now he was just as he was when he was cursed, trapped inside the body of a deku.
Dreek instantly took control and marched towards the Palace gate. Upon arriving at the gate, two relatively large dekus jumped up out of the ground and blocked the way forwards.
"Halt! Who approaches?" One guard asked.
"Commander Dreek of the royal guard. I have returned from my mission and I have information that the King must hear." Dreek reported.
"Very well. I'll let the others know to let you in."
The guard jumped back into the ground then sprung back out a moment later, gliding towards the throne room by a way of holding on to a pair of large, rapidly rotating leaves. The other guard stood to a side allowing Dreek and the hidden Tatl to enter.
You used your real name. Why? Link asked.
"As much trouble as you think it will cause, it will be much easier to get aid and resources using these connections. Saying we were some scrub from another land requesting help would take weeks just to be allowed near the temple. Trust me, it's easier this way."
Trust? That was one of the emotions he had given up a long time ago and wasn't willing to retrieve it any time soon. It was better to be in control and have no need for trust, yet he now noticed it had been a long time since he had had any control over anything. Although he would never mention the words, it was a cruel work of fate.